Cyber Feminists

Riffing on Code Like A Girl

On my Metamodern Wannabes Substack, I developed a writing style that I am comfortable with. I riffed on the articles of others that sparked me. Riffing, in my usage, involves taking a basic idea and expanding upon it to explore new directions.

As further background, Final Wa𝒊ve Feminism is inviting guest posts that align with our overall theme. The first such post was The Next Chapter of My Feminist Anger by Dinah. There is more to this story.

Dinah is also the convener of the Code Like A Girl Substack.

The Sticker that Started it All

In 2015, Dinah was invited to participate in a STEM workshop called Think About Math for girls in grade 9. She would be speaking directly with groups of 8-10 girls about how her degree in mathematics launched her career in tech. She wanted the message to stick, so she made some stickers.

Code Like a Girl is a space for women and non-binary people in tech — to learn from writers who've been in the room, and find community with people navigating the same terrain.

Most, almost all, Substacks are individual efforts but Code Like a Girl is a true collective, well over fifty Writers! And they are all women! And it seems to me that they may have a unique perspective on feminism. Perhaps this type are deserving of their own identifier. With a little creative help from AI, I came up with Cyber Feminists.

One of the themes in this vast territory is Women Rising. A recent article in this series is Women Rising: What 7 Women Learned About Launching a Paid Tier. I decided to explore and saw a lot of potentially useful information.

We talked to seven women at different stages of this journey. Their triggers were different. Their offers were different.

Yes, and, said with confirmation bias, I believe that the rising voices of women are different, generally, from the voices of men and are worth paying more attention to.

…when we asked what they’d tell someone who hasn’t launched yet, they all said the same thing.

Don’t wait, just do it, you can figure it out along the way.

This is the same energy that launched Final Wa𝒊ve Feminism, you can figure it out along the way.

Code Like A Girl is nicely organized with tabs. Unwritten Rules caught my eye and I scanned the archive. I really felt the feminine voice and picked an article to read.

The Feedback That Taught Me Everything About Women and Power

by Emanuela B

Recently, an HR representative, a woman, gave me feedback I wasn’t expecting.

“You take up a lot of space.”

For years I watched the women in my life struggle to find their place in the world. My mother taught me that whatever happened, I had to exist. To take up space. That space, even today, is denied to so many women, for economic, cultural, religious reasons. Possessive partners. Family pressure.

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Back to Dinah, her Being Fearless, Being Me Substack has a tab I love, Canadiana. And as a fellow Canadian I relate to what she wrote in My Fight for Canada and the Stories that Unite Us. I feel a kindred spirit.